Who founded Tokyopop and when was it established?
Tokyopop was founded in 1997 by Stuart J. Levy, originally operating under the name Mixx Entertainment and headquartered in Los Angeles, California.
Questions about Tokyopop
Short answers, pulled from the story.
What was Tokyopop's 100% Authentic Manga policy?
In 2002, Tokyopop became the first American publisher to adopt a policy of printing all its manga in the original Japanese right-to-left reading order, preserving the artwork without mirror-flipping. This allowed volumes to be released three to six times faster than the industry standard and priced at $9.99, below the $12.99 to $16.99 competitors charged.
Why did Tokyopop shut down its North American publishing operations in 2011?
Tokyopop announced on the 15th of April 2011 that it would close its North American publishing office by the 31st of May 2011. Stuart Levy cited Borders, Tokyopop's largest customer, filing for bankruptcy and stopping both purchases and debt payments, combined with the loss of Kodansha licenses in 2009 and the absence of legitimate ebook alternatives to combat piracy.
What was Tokyopop's Rising Stars of Manga competition?
Rising Stars of Manga was a talent competition Tokyopop launched on the 15th of August 2002 to discover American manga creators. Entrants submitted 15-25 page stories for judging by Tokyopop editors, with the top ten winning cash prizes between $500 and $2,500 and publication in an anthology. Tokyopop held eight competitions between 2002 and 2008, plus one in the UK in 2005.
How large was Tokyopop's manga market share in the United States?
By 2004, Tokyopop held the largest share of manga sales in the United States, reaching as high as 50% of manga exports to the country according to Nissei Weekly. Publishers Weekly later ranked the company first on its Fast-Growing Independent Publishers list, noting that 2022 sales were up 580% from 2020.
What happened to Tokyopop's Kodansha licenses?
On the 31st of August 2009, Kodansha announced it would let all its licensing agreements with Tokyopop's North American and German divisions expire so it could publish its own English translations. The loss left series including Rave Master, Initial D, GetBackers, and Life unfinished, and made all previously published Kodansha volumes go out of print immediately.